


Bring It On

by artificialashley



Category: RuPaul's Drag Race RPF
Genre: Cheerleader AU, F/F, High School AU, Lesbian AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-12
Updated: 2020-07-07
Packaged: 2021-03-04 02:15:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,866
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24675964
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/artificialashley/pseuds/artificialashley
Summary: Ballet dancer Brooke's world is thrown upside down where she’s unexpectedly forced to move to the other side of the continent. Longing to express herself in any way she can, Brooke turns to her new school’s cheer squad despite her off-kilter relationship with the head cheerleader.(NB - this was written over a year ago on AQ and this will be a remastered version with better grammar)
Relationships: Brooke Lynn Hytes/Vanessa Vanjie Mateo
Comments: 22
Kudos: 35





	1. Chapter 1

Twenty-one hours. 

Brooke spent an entire twenty-one hours in the car with her parents saying goodbye to the bright city lights of Toronto and hello to the jungle of Tampa Heights. It seemed like such a long time to be on the road but when seventeen years of ballet, boys, friends and family were being torn away – twenty-one hours seemed like nothing. Training every single day till she finally broke through with being cast as Odette and it was gone in less than one. Brooke’s blood, sweat and tears were suddenly and swiftly wiped away – gone without a trace.

Yes, she could start training again in Florida but it wouldn’t be the same, she’d have slipped right down the bottom of the ladder with not a hand to pull her up. The thought of dancing anywhere but her studio left Brooke with an uncomfortable feeling - guilt? Longingness? Maybe it was just that darker voice telling her that there were always better things happening that she was not a part of.

The same voice that she tried desperately to shut out the next day as she made her way to her first lesson at R.A Charles High and scanned the room for a place to sit.

Brooke was the type of person whose cogs were always turning. She didn’t need to come into a room with guns blazing. She took deep breaths, she observed, she catalogued and she always came off as pristine. That’s why the clean-cut prima ballerina surprised herself when she stood at the back of the class – the unfamiliar environment closing in on her – with not a thought about composure crossing her mind.

Throwing herself into the closest seat she could, Brooke looked to her left to see one of the most visually intriguing people she had ever come across in her life. With heavy eyes, a protruding brow and a shaved head, the boy was a strange mix of breathtaking and frightening. Fascinated by his prominent features, it took Brooke a few moments to realise the boy was talking to her.

“I’m sorry, what was that?” She asked, her confidence once again faltering and finding herself questioning every pause, emphasis and even her own accent in the simple five-word sentence.

“I said I’m Jovan, you must be new.”

“That obvious?”

“No existing student here would sit with me.” The boy let out a hearty laugh that Brooke wanted to turn into a music box.

The utter antithesis of her friends back in Toronto, Brooke’s mind dabbled across the thought that two days ago she wouldn’t have even spoken to the boy. Nevertheless, this was a fresh start and Brooke wouldn’t pass up the opportunity of a potential friend to show her about - apparently she had a lot of catching up to do (hence her reason for accepting the invite to watch a film at Jovan’s house later that night despite her initial hesitations).

Only a clear lack of similarity between the pair was outlined at lunch when Brooke asked her new friend if the school had any dance teams or facilities, resulting in the return of the hearty laugh she’d met earlier.

“I guess you could say we do.” Jovan rolled his eyes. “Come see for yourself”.

As they made their way into the cafeteria it was already evident to Brooke who Jovan was going to show her, a gaggle of girls clad in tight blue cheer uniforms.

Skirts short. Ponytails high. Legs lotioned to perfection.

Before she could fully take them in they were already up on the table performing for the school- not an eye glancing anywhere but the three girls.

“My name's big Silky, yeah, get out my face, cause when I shake it, it’s like a hurricane!” 

The three clicked their hands and stomped their feet so in sync they commanded everyone’s attention - especially Brooke’s.

“My name’s Akeria, yeah, you use three wishes, you see me shake it, cause I’m delicious!”

Though both very pretty and commanding - it was immediately clear to Brooke who the leader of the trio was. Her dark hair was tied back to show off her strong bone structure and deep brown eyes, a few strands of hair falling out of place to frame her face just perfectly.

She was a butterfly emerging from the group, dark and feminine. The royal blue of the uniform impeccably matched her skin tone; the girl exuded a sense of confidence, significance, importance. A wave crashed over Brooke and she was finding it incredibly hard to stay afloat. Despite having such a petite frame she managed to show dominance over the other girls and steal away any eyes that wandered away from her.

“My name is Vanjie, yeah, I like to party, and when I shake it, the kids say ‘Hi mami!’” She jumped from the table down to the floor and flipped seemingly effortlessly onto the ground in front of her. 

Before giving a flirtatious curtsey and sitting back down with the other Amazons, the girl made dead eye contact with Brooke and winked - for the first time in years Brooke felt utterly aware of herself as though she was standing fully naked.

There was that wave again - Brooke was now without a doubt drowning.

Her inner monologue questioned why she was so drawn to the girl and why that wink sent her into internal hysterics before being snapped back to reality by Jovan’s voice.

“And that is R.A Charles’ answer to dance.” He laughed before shaking his head in clear disdain at the cheerleaders, Brooke noting something in his tone deeper rooted that she was afraid to question. Despite having a deep curiosity about “Vanjie” she held back from asking Jovan with fear of losing the only potential friend she had at her new school so kept quiet for the rest of the day - her thoughts nonetheless congregated with images of the girl. Every lesson she innocently scanned the class, telling herself it had nothing to do with the cheerleader yet being contrastingly disappointed every time her face failed to appear in any of Brooke’s classes. Brooke was a bee already trapped onto a flower's pollen despite only one ounce of exposure to it and no suggestion as to why it pulled her in so much. She was feeling the power of instant attraction coercing her in a way she had never experienced before, even if she couldn’t quite discern herself what that attraction was.

Yes, she had looked at girls before and felt a desire to be liked by them, a want to be friends with them but this was different - whatever it was Brooke felt about the girl, it was more than a want or desire, it was a need.

***

Although Brooke had the preconceived notion that Jovan’s bedroom would be nothing like her old one in Toronto - clean and organised with her wardrobe colour coordinated with sections and subsections for patterns and materials, her windowsill gleaming enough to see her own reflection - she didn’t expect what she saw. 

Utter chaos.

The walls had so much writing scrawled on them that she could barely make out the words and letters, everything blending together like one silver line drawing. If Brooke could describe it in the simplest of literary ways it would be if an interior designer on ket and an interior designer on weed made a room together whilst also drunk - even her attempts to describe the room in a simple simile overcomplicating itself horrendously. The utter antithesis of what she had seen of the rest of the house with its clean-cut simplicity, something Brooke was a lot more accustomed to.

“Where’s your family tonight?” Brooke asked, trying her best to get to know her new friend.

“My mom’s working late and my stepdad is out with a friend, I don’t know about Vanessa.”

“Vanessa?” 

“My stepsister,” Jovan replied, his tone implying he had no interest in discussing her further, once again pushing Brooke back into that space of holding back, not wanting to get on the nerves of her new friend. 

“Want some?” he pulled a bottle of vodka from under his bed.

Although Brooke’s automatic answer to this question had always been a firm yet polite no (she was an athlete, after all), something in that moment made her want to say yes. Whether it was the fact that she’d essentially been picked up from her old life and dropped somewhere completely new or unfamiliar, the fact that she knew she wouldn’t be able to dance the way she used to, Jovan’s blunt and innocent way of asking or simply that she wanted to fit in, Brooke didn’t know. 

Maybe it was a combination of all of it - nothing to hold her back.

***

She felt warm. And cold. Not particularly drunk. Maybe just euphoric. She didn’t know, and she couldn’t work it out. 

It scared her, the thought of not being in control of herself and her thoughts, yet she also felt relaxed, like it didn’t matter. A walking oxymoron of paranoia and level headedness she made her way out of Jovan’s room and downstairs to find some food, leaving her new friend giggling to himself on his bed and staring at the ceiling as though it were that of the Sistine Chapel.

Walking into the kitchen she was surprised to see someone already raking through the fridge. Immediately transported back to the school cafeteria, Brooke was frozen, sheepish, suddenly self-conscious of everything; her stance, her smile, the body she’d treated as a temple for years. It was her

Turning around with a Diet Coke in each hand, the cheerleader started talking without fully taking Brooke in.

“Jovan, how many freaking times have I told you not to loiter in the doorways like some sorta ant-” she stopped mid-flow as she looked up to see Brooke. “Oh.”

“Hi,” Brooke smiled at the girl, feeling the weight of the world on her head when she titled it the slightest degree. Scared she’d sound utterly wasted if she spoke anymore, she just smiled at the girl - in the end looking even more wasted than before. 

“I know you,” the girl, Vanessa, grinned. Brooke’s head was stuck in a loop.

I know you. I didn't imagine it. I know you. 

It was hard to fathom how those three words sent Brooke in such a tailspin - all she wanted to do was walk over there, rip the scrunchie out of her hair and hold her tightly with some sort of magnetic force.

Never in her life had she felt such an instant attraction

And to a girl.

To a girl who looked like that.

Always too focused on ballet to spend time dating, Brooke was never one to fall into the trap of romanticism, yet there she was throwing herself headfirst into the rocky waters for a girl who had spoken a mere three words to her.

Vanessa.

The butterfly.

The beautiful sea witch who stole her voice. Slinky, small and seductive. Brooke was under her spell. 

Stuck in a trance, Brooke and Vanessa’s intense session of what could only be described as ‘eye-fucking’ was interrupted by the sound of voices coming into the room.

Vanessa’s Coke can hit the floor.

“Vanjie, can you hurry up? I don’t want to be stuck waiting around with your faggy brother.” A boy Brooke hadn’t yet met sighed, glaring impatiently at Vanessa. 

“What the fuck does that have to do with anything,” Jovan muttered under his breath before rolling his eyes and grabbing Brooke’s wrist to take her upstairs. “This is my friend Brooke by the way, thanks for the hospitality.” 

He left the room with the heartiest of scoffs.

“You can’t go home tonight, you’re way too drunk.”

“Your sister is the cheerleader?” Brooke asked mid-stumble up the stairs, too distracted by the girl downstairs to fully process his words. “And that’s her boyfriend?”

“Winner winner, chicken dinner,” he sighed before tucking Brooke into his bed and making himself comfortable on the floor.

Brooke was asleep before they could even begin to utter their goodnights.

***

Brooke woke up with a fright, started by her unfamiliar surroundings. And even more startled to see her new friend sat watching her.

“Did anyone ever tell you that you’re a weirdo?” Brooke squinted at the light above.

“Every day.” Jovan laughed, throwing Brooke a toothbrush and sachet of aspirin. “Hurry you’ll need these.”

Immediately disgusted at the bitter aftertaste of alcohol in her mouth and the thought of going to school without having showered, nevermind completing her full morning routine, Brooke dragged herself out of the bed and allowed Jovan to show her the way to the bathroom. Looking at herself in the mirror she began to pick apart her general ruggedness that morning, wincing at the sight of the mascara under her eyes.

Hearing the door creak open, she was surprised to see Vanessa stood in front on her instead of Jovan, looking like a Disney princess that just rolled out of bed with her hair perfectly coiffed, not a bag in sight.

Keeping her cool, she tried to continue brushing her teeth normally as Vanessa grabbed her own brush and started to clean her own too. Switching glances between the mirror and the girl next to her, Brooke only realised how aggressively she had been brushing until Vanessa began to imitate her, spitting and giving Brooke a quizzical look.

Soon they were enthralled in their own mini-contest, Vanessa remaining stone cold and she sped up and brushed harder before giving the sink one final rinse, dropping her toothbrush in a draw and walking out without uttering a word in Brooke’s direction - gone with the flick of her hair. 

Vanessa - 1. Brooke - 0.

***

It was not until fifth period on the Thursday of that week that Brooke saw Vanessa again.

It seemed that she owed a debt of gratitude to gym class she had never felt before after being informed that her teacher was absent that day and the class would merge with the neighbouring one for a game of dodgeball in the gymnasium.

Low and behold there was the girl she’d been unable to escape for the past two days; the centre of gravity in the room, her hair in its signature ponytail, tanned legs on show. 

Too distracted by Vanessa’s presence she hadn’t even noticed she’d walked into someone until she heard a threat mumbled before her.

Looking up, she matched the voice with one of the two girls Vanessa had been dancing in the cafeteria on her first day, Silky. Unsure of how to react Brooke just backed away but only seemed to make matters worse

“Hey Vanjie,” the girl yelled. “Think I’ve found an easy target for today’s game.” 

Expecting Vanessa to at least acknowledge their meeting on Monday before or encounter the next morning with even a smile or look, Brooke was surprised to see the girl simply laugh at her friend, acting as if Brooke didn’t exist.

But if there was one thing Brooke thrived upon it was being underestimated, her competitive nature from years of ballet rising inside of her. She began to channel every piece of fear and fight that she’d felt in her battle to become Odette last term.

Let the games begin. 

Though putting up a fight, the cheerleaders were no match for Brooke- twirling, kicking and bending out of the way as she managed to dodge every throw until she was the last one on her side, opposed by none other than Vanessa.

“C’mon Vanjie!” She heard the girls friends chant from the sidelines.

Determined to stick it back to the popular girl, Brooke clenched the ball between her hands. All of a sudden she saw the opposing ball fly towards her legs, quickly leaping into a box jump to allow it to swing below her body. With that Brooke took the opportunity of Vanessa being off-guard to throw her own ball mid-air, watching as it collided with the other girl's chest.

One point to Brooke, she thought to herself as she watched the girl walk over to her friends and chat frustratingly, occasional glances being shot in her direction.

“Hey, white girl.” Vanessa’s other friend, Akeria, shouted over.

Contemplating on ignoring her, Brooke realised she would probably only make trouble for herself walking away from the most popular girls in school so doubtfully made her way over.

“You’re pretty flexible.” Akeria eyed up Brooke in a peculiar way, as though he was looking up and down an outfit she was going to try on.

“Thanks, I guess,” Brooke replied. She may be intimidated by the girls but she had always portrayed confidence and never let her cracks show.

“You know we're holding tryouts for the Amazons tomorrow, one of our girls broke her leg and we need a replacement before we compete, you should come along.” Silky smiled at Brooke, showing a completely different side to when they had first entered the gym. 

“Just because she’s flexible doesn’t mean she can cheer.” Vanessa joined in the conversation as though Brooke wasn’t even present. “I highly doubt this girl's gonna be able to yell or flip.” 

“Vanjie, we need a new girl or else we can’t compete.” Akeria made faces at her friend that Brooke didn’t need to be a psychic to translate as a big fat “what are you doing!”

“I’m sorry girls, and no offence Brandy, but I think you guys are underestimating our hustle. Cheer is hard work and I don’t think she’s cut out for the team.” Vanessa gave a sarcastic smile before turning on one heel and strutting away from the group. 

Brooke was stunned at Vanessa suggesting that she had little work ethic, wanting so badly to follow the girl and give her a piece of her mind. (Along with a piece of her full stop but that was neither here nor there).

She was going to find a way to be up there with the Amazons.

And she was not going to back down.


	2. Bring It On Again

One night was all Brooke had to try and channel her precise years of ballet training into the fast-paced flicks and fierceness of cheerleading.

Although she was physically capable of doing all the moves she had been meticulously researching, Brooke was still far out of her comfort zone. Yes,she could flip. But could she do it fast enough? Would she even  _ look _ like a cheerleader? It took every inch of will not to return her feet back to third position after completing a move, trying her very best to keep them shoulder-width apart, arms raised in a high V.

To no avail, Jovan declined her offer of coming to the trials with her, Brooke finding herself alone as she entered the gym.

Trying hard not to let the cheerleaders intimidate her, Brooke cast her mind back to Toronto where she had always floated above the rest of the school.

She was ready.

Like something out of a cheesy chick flick, the squad sat at a long table of five; two boys adjourning either end, Akeria and Silky sat next to each of them and of course Vanessa in the middle. It was clear to any naked eye that she was the leader, gold piping around the edge of her jacket that the other’s seemed to lack, a big “Vanjie” embroidered in curls under the logo. She was undoubtedly number one.

“You need to fill one of these out.” She looked at Brooke with slight disdain, holding up the application form.

“Did it,” Brooke replied sharply, whipping the sheet from her pocket and walking towards the table to hand it to the girl.

Her large eyes skimming the page quickly, Vanessa grinned.

“Brooke Lynn, is it? Before we start I’m going to need to make sure you can do a standing back tuck. Standard procedure, you’ll understand.”

“Just Brooke. Standing back handspring, back tuck okay?” She replied, not waiting for the girls response before throwing herself backwards into the move, grateful for the years of flexibility training. Brooke knew she was still in too deep with the moves, but if there was one thing she’d learned about competition it was that they should never see you falter.

“Nice job, blondie.” Akeria smiled at Brooke, jotting something down in her notebook.

Brooke would have paid the entire week's lunch money to see what it was.

Maybe even two weeks worth.

“But can she yell? We’ll try an oldie.” Vanessa looked Brooke up and down, clearly taking note of her quieter and more reserved nature compared to the Amazons.

Moving her arms to the tune of her own chant, she began to perform from her seat and once again Brooke realised why everyone at the school was so obsessed with Vanessa and the Amazons. Something about her was just so captivating; even when sitting down and cheering Brooke was still impressed.

“We’re bad, we got the T, we can’t be had, we’re the best so score them points, you win the game we’ll rock this joint. Go Amazons!” 

Brooke tried her hardest to mimic Vanessa’s cheer, even throwing an arabesque in at the end. Only she knew her voice wasn’t as loud or commanding as it should have been.

“I transferred from a Ballet Academy in Toronto, your school has no other type of dance and it’s a last resort. I haven’t cheered before but I can learn. I checked out your stuff online, it’s good but I think you could use me,” Brooke pleaded her case to the girl, trying not to let her emotions cloud over too much.

Although she didn’t know her well, what Brooke did know was that Vanessa would not allow a weak player onto the team.

“Do it,” Silky nudged her captain.

“Front handspring, step out, round off. Back handspring, step out, round off. Back handspring, full twisting layout.” Vanessa popped the “t” in layout with a devilish smile, raising her brow at Brooke. 

Feeling a mix of anger and intrigue towards Vanessa, Brooke waltzed to the back of the gym, keeping her arms elegantly draped by her sides. The room was silent and the tension knife worthy. With that, Brooke turned to face the panel and dove - hitting every single step perfectly.

Landing close to the table, a rush filled her when she saw Vanessa’s face, her mouth open with surprise and her eyes just that tad wider than they had been before.

Despite the other girls hollering and cheering at her, Brooke found the most pride in the response from Vanessa, the leader, the commander. She’d found a crack in the hard ice-queen exterior and seemed to garner something in the girl’s mind.

Brooke figured she was just about on her way.

One step at a time.

“Brooke is bank!” One of the boys at the end of the table grinned.

“Bankrupt,” Vanessa retaliated, giving the boy a look blacker than coal. “I’m captain and what I say goes. This is  _ not _ a democracy. Sorry, Brooke Lynn, I don’t think you have what it takes. Maybe next time.”

For years Brooke had learned how to take defeat. You smile, you thank for the opportunity, you say goodbye and exit with grace. In her old life, she’d done it hundreds of times with no issue, knowing that it was just another bend in the road.

All of that was gone here.

Fighting back tears, she grabbed her bag from the floor and stormed out the gym - the antithesis of graceful and pristine. Vanessa’s words ringing in her ear, she hadn’t even noticed that Jovan was at the doorway until he grabbed her arm and pulled her to one side.

“I told you so?” Brooke said to him with choked breath, wishing she’d stayed away from the cheerleaders like her new friend had warned.

“We’ve all been there B, that was me in Freshman year. You’d think being double jointed in almost every way would get me on their squad but it didn’t,” he responded, Brooke, surprised at the nice words towards her, already used to the boy’s cynical tyrades. “And here I am saying I want nothing to do with it yet unable to resist watching. Trust me though, you killed it. They’ll be regretting not having you when they’re still coming second at nationals. They’re just jealous Brooke. Stupid bitches.”

Used to bottling her feelings, Brooke let the tears fall down her cheeks every so slightly, grateful that she had found at least one kind soul in the jungle of predators at R.A. Charles.

It was just a shame he was related to the lioness who ruled over them all.

A massive shame, indeed.

“What do you say we go to mine, watch sad movies and get drunk again? My parents are out of town,” he asked.

“Your sister..” Brooke trailed off, not finding the words to express how she felt about the girl but knowing she most certainly did not want to see her.

“In case you haven’t already noticed, I don’t give a fuck what she thinks.” Jovan laughed. “I promise we’ll stay well clear of her.”

“Only if I pick the film,” Brooke bartered back. “I’m not watching any of the weird shit you have on DVD.”

“Deal,” Jovan raised his hand for Brooke to shake whilst laughing. 

Fuck Vanessa, she thought. Maybe her night wouldn’t be so bad after all. 

***

“I’m sorry, girl. If I had known..” Jovan broke the awkward silence in the air.

Or what would have been silence had the entire cheer squad and their significant others not been hosting a party directly below them.

“It’s fine.” Brooke tried her best to brush him off, taking a heftier sip from her drink until it was all gone. “I had to face them at some point, better sooner than later I guess.”

Having been drinking since returning from school, it was safe to say that Brooke was rather steamed.

“It’s my fault, I should have known that obnoxious popular teenagers and a free house meant a party. Would it make you feel better if we tried to steal some of their booze?”

The tipsy and confident Brooke she had met at the start of the week returning, she smiled at Jovan in response.“Yes. Yes, it would.”

Making their way downstairs, Brooke knew they’d be unable to avoid Vanessa. Despite being so horrible earlier, the ethanol brewing in Brooke’s blood longed to see her, to look her in the eyes after being rejected.

Walking into the kitchen where she’d encountered the girl previously, Brooke was determined to rise above whatever comments she knew would be volleyed her way.

“Vanjie, who’s the babe with your step-brother?” Vanessa’s boyfriend asked non-subtly, despite having already met Brooke on the previous Monday. Brooke watched as he moved his arm away from her body, his fingers gripping the red leather ever so slightly.

Assumedly on a similar level to Jovan and Brooke with a drink in her hand, Vanessa looked at the pair and responded.

“She’s nobody, just some transfer who thinks she’s hot shit.”

Brooke knew what to do. She knew to rise above, taking a breath. Then a couple more. She was calm.

However, the same could not be said for Jovan.

“Hey Vanessa, has anyone ever told you that you’re jealous? You’re all about team spirit and being number one but you know fine well that you’d rather lose every competition than have someone that is slightly better than you on your squad. So what is it about Brooke? She’s prettier, she’s more polished, she’s stronger?”

It took Brooke a moment to process his words, spitting from his lips like daggers between each heavy breath, smacking the target right between her thick brows. Despite being tipsy, Brooke could see the flinch of pain Vanessa had felt before she reverted back to her usual self and laughed at his comment, brushing it off as if it were nothing in front of her squad. 

“It’s more to do with the fact she can’t cheer,” Vanessa retaliated harshly. “Sorry guys, I guess it’s time for everyone to go, can’t seem to have any fun around here without people ruining it. I’ll see you lot for practice on Sunday.”

Although she spoke nicely to the squad, Brooke could see pain behind her glossy eyes and gritted teeth.

***

“Jovan, you didn’t have to do that,” Brooke hushed under her breath as his sister finished escorting the rest of the guests out of the house.

“Someone needs to put her in her place, Brooke. All I did was be honest,” he sighed.

Gone was the calm exterior she had held previously in front of everyone, Vanessa was mad.

“I thought I told everyone to leave.” She glared in Brooke’s direction, resulting in a scoff from her brother. Not wanting to cause any more trouble, Brooke grabbed her bag and went to get up before being stopped by Jovan.

“You don’t own this house Vanessa. And anything you want to say to me you can say in front of Brooke. I’m sorry you have a problem with my honesty.”

The tension radiating between them, Brooke was waiting for the storm. Despite wanting to hide from the clash of two huge personalities, she found herself glued to the spot she stood in, unable to look away from the pair as though they were two race cars rushing towards each other head on, live before her eyes.

“I don’t have an issue with your “honesty”, but if you have an issue with me you can pull me aside and tell me you don’t have to pop off at me in front of my whole team. I thought we were closer than that.” Vanessa took a fierce step towards him, her tiny feet causing earthquakes in the kitchen.

“I did not pop off at you, I told you the goddamn truth. You’re so defensive, and that’s the only reason I pushed any of your buttons in the first place”

“You’re so full of shit Jovan. The other day there you were telling me how proud you were of me!” Vanessa was screaming at this point, her voice hoarse and tears pricking her eyes.

Every face Jovan had pulled when Brooke mentioned the cheerleaders to him, every awkward encounter she had witnessed between the siblings had all amounted to this moment. 

“Because I was fucking proud of you!” Jovan shouted back at his sister. 

“It’s not my fault you never made it onto the squad, it’s been years just get over it. You knew at the time there was nothing I could do, I wasn’t gonna give up my chance to please you when all you do is shit like this.”

Brooke’s face cracked into tens of pieces on the floor.

She didn’t even try to pick them up.

“I don’t give a shit that I didn’t make it onto the squad with you two fucking years ago Vanessa, but you’ve turned into that person who did that to me and now you’re doing it to Brooke. Yes, I was fucking proud of you working hard to be a captain but not if you’re gonna let your jealousy take over.”

Clearly striking a chord with Vanessa, she got even closer into her brother’s face. This was new territory for Brooke, any fighting in the ballet world was behind the scenes and sneaky, the complete opposite at the screaming match the siblings were having in front of her, years of anger and repressed issues clearly seeping through the surface of their skins.

“Regardless of what you think, I would have never have spoken to you like that in front of people who are meant to respect you like you just did! I would have pulled you aside and said ‘Jovan you’re fucking jealous.’” Vanessa shouted again, the argument between the two siblings being clearly deeper rooted than insecurity about her position of power on the Amazons.

“Well, I think you’re a fucking terrible sister because I’m not here to hide around away from you and whisper shit in your direction. You can yell at me when I leave high school with a fucking good life because I didn’t spend my whole time there trying to impress people who won’t give a shit about me in a few years time.” Jovan started to walk away from Vanessa, knocking over a chair in the process.

“I was trying to be cordial with you.”

“I don’t need anyone to be cordial with me, I need you to be real. At least I’m getting the real you now, ey sis?”

“I thought we were fucking cool Jovan.” Vanessa let her emotions pour out, Brooke shocked at the girl she’d barely seen move her face in a week losing any sense of her priorly cold exterior. Vanessa was a real human being and she was hurt.

“If we’re cool, I’m not gonna lie to you like all your teammates do. I’m not gonna feed you with bullshit like those ‘sisters’ do, is that what makes you happy?”

“I never told you to lie to me!” Vanessa gave one last final scream at her brother, her voice seconds from breaking completely, before running out of the room. Although she hadn’t known her for long, Brooke could see she was coming from a hurt place, the click of the front door ringing through the house on her departure.

“Fuck,” Jovan spoke to himself, a tap too tight to twist off.

Adjusting to the way that the room had gone from one hundred to zero in less than a minute, Brooke was about to comfort her friend like he had done for her earlier when he spoke before her.

“It’s freezing outside.” He looked to the floor, not making eye contact with Brooke.

“You should go find her,” Brooke suggested.

“She won’t talk to me. And if I’m honest I don’t want to talk to her either, I just don’t want her to freeze,” Jovan laughed in a slightly hysterical way. The way you laughed when everything you felt had been torn out of you and your body couldn’t comprehend any other way in which to react. All that was left to do in the sick silence was to laugh.

“I’ll go find her,” Brooke said, any prior anger she felt towards Vanessa melted away by the scene she just watched unfold.

She shook off his thank you whilst getting ready to leave, determined to feel useful for the the first time since leaving Canada.

***

Clad in one of Jovan’s fleecy coats with another one in hand for his sister, it didn’t take Brooke long to find the other girl. There she was curled up on a bench by the park close to her home, hands running through her hair. Despite the argument and the fact that they shared no blood, it was clear that she and Jovan were related, a mirror reflecting their mannerisms before Brooke.

“Hey.” Brooke sat next to her, unsure of what else to say. “I brought you a coat.”

“I’m fine,” Vanessa spoke quietly and looked straight ahead, not making eye contact.

“You’re stubborn, aren’t you?” Brooke rested the coat on the other girls back anyway, moving her hands away quickly like she was squeezing hot coals.

“You don’t know me,” she whispered again, Brooke seeing a different side to both the Vanessa she had watched at school for the past week and the one she’d watched not more than half an hour earlier in the kitchen.

“Maybe not. But I do know you’re upset. And that it’s freezing out here.” 

Garnering no response from the girl, Brooke spoke again: “If you’re not gonna speak to me it’s fine but I’m not leaving you alone like this, I can ring your boyfriend if you want?”

In a similar way to how Jovan had done so earlier in the calm after the storm, Vanessa began to laugh to herself as though her body had no other way of processing.

“It’s Friday so he’ll probably be at Ariel’s..Or is it Kahanna’s on a Friday, I can never quite keep up.”

“Well he clearly doesn’t deserve you but maybe that’s something for another time.” Brooke looked at the girl, not wanting to scare her away by prying too deep into her life. She had already seen such a vulnerable side to someone so guarded and didn’t want to intrude even further, didn’t want to risk her running away into the wild.

“You don’t need to worry about me. I’m a big girl, I’ve got this.” She raised her eyebrows towards Brooke, looking at her for the first time since she had sat down.

“Well I don’t really believe you so I’m just gonna stay here until you’re alright.” Brooke crossed her arms.

“You don’t have to babysit me for my brother, I’m fine.” Vanessa pleaded.

“I’m not,” Brooke responded.

Which was true. Although Jovan had asked her to find his sister she was no longer waiting for him. She needed Vanessa to be alright for herself. Pulling a bottle of water from her pocket, she offered some to the girl.

“Don’t you think I’ve had enough for one night,”

“It’s water.” Brooke laughed, causing Vanessa to crack up too. Within minutes they were both giggling and even though Brooke knew that it wasn’t that funny objectively, something about the atmosphere in the air and the whole fucked up night they’d had just had experienced made the girls laugh more and more.

Until of course Vanessa was no longer laughing, tears once again streaming down her face the way they had when she argued with her brother. Brooke put her arm around the girl and rubbed her back softly. 

“It’s alright,” she whispered.

“Why are you being so nice to me? I’ve been a bitch,” Vanessa asked, turning to look at Brooke. She was a deer in headlights. A lost puppy looking for comfort.

“As much as I’d love to give some sort of poetic answer like they do in the movies, I don’t have a fucking clue.” Brooke looked up at the night sky.

She hadn’t known what to expect when picturing her new life in Florida but it certainly hadn’t been trying out for cheerleading, befriending a double jointed oddball and sitting on a bench at midnight comforting a girl who had treated her worse than muck.

A girl that she probably would have kissed were she not in such a vulnerable state. 

“I don’t have a fucking clue, Vanessa.”


	3. Bring It On: All or Nothing

A typical Saturday for Brooke Lynn Hytes started at six-thirty. She’d wake up, brush her teeth, clear any mess from her room and eat breakfast before going to ballet. After thirty minutes of stretching and basic Pilates, she’d start with a company class, improving her craft outside of choreo. Next would come rehearsal for an upcoming show, play, recital or audition. A quick break for lunch and school work then back to training. By five she’d have the rest of the afternoon to herself. 

The day following the fight was not a typical Saturday. 

Waking at eleven, Brooke was initially surprised to find herself on the floor before remembering the events of the night before. Too ashamed to go home, Vanessa had accepted Brooke’s offer to stay at hers. Given the girl's inconsistent nature, Brooke spent her shower nervous about how Vanessa would react to waking up at her home. She was suddenly self-conscious of her room. Why were the walls green? Why hadn’t she unpacked everything yet? Too enthralled in her panicked inner monologue, she failed to even notice Vanessa had woken up when she walked back into her room, clad only in a towel. 

“Hey.” The girl squinted at her, seemingly unsure of what to say, her eyes doing a once-over of Brooke’s body.

In contrast to the day they had brushed their teeth together, Vanessa looked more like the sea hag than a Disney princess upon waking - her black hair wild and matted around her, her eyes baggy and bloodshot (Brooke never would have admitted it but she still thought she looked breathtaking).

“Hi,” Brooke responded, perching herself on the end of the bed.

“Thanks for the t-shirt.” Vanessa looked down at herself then back at Brooke, “And the bed...and everything I guess.”

“You’d do the same if you thought someone was alone in the cold without anywhere to go.” Brooke tried her best to act nonchalant.

“Hmm,” Vanessa responded, clearly unsure of whether or not she would.

“I’ll let you get yourself ready, feel free to borrow anything,”

***

“Come to practice tomorrow?” Vanessa stopped herself as she walked out of Brooke’s door, her guilt about the way she had treated the girl clearly playing on her mind.

“Why would I? I can’t cheer, remember?” Brooke watched the girl as she recited her dig from the night before, fascinated by the way her own jumper hung largely on Vanessa’s arms, just the tips of her fingers poking out the end. 

“If we wanna do well we need the best people on our squad, and that just so happens to be you. I’ve had a bit of a reality check and it might not be in the way I’m familiar with but I can’t deny your talent.”

Although Brooke found it hard to read the girl's face, she could tell in her tone that she meant it.

“I thought I was bankrupt,” Brooke grinned, her old competitive nature coming out of her as she played hard to get. “I’m sorry Vanessa but if you want me on your team you’re going to have to try a little bit harder than that.”

Clearly not used to that kind of reaction after offering someone a first class ticket to the popular table at R.A Charles, Vanessa stood still for a moment, processing what Brooke had said.

“I’ll see you on Monday,” Brooke added, making sure to emphasise the day of the week before closing the door on Vanessa, looking through the window and catching a glimpse of the girl shaking her head and smirking before stomping down the garden path in her usual manner.

***

“So how're things with Vanessa?” Brooke asked Jovan as they made their way into school the following Monday. Knowing she was potentially rubbing salt into his wounds, she had tried to not bring the subject up for five minutes but failed miserably, her intrigue about the girl once again getting the better of her.

“I haven’t spoken to her,” he responded. “We're just two boats sailing past each other at the minute. If she can't deal with me speaking honestly to her then I’d rather not speak to her at all.”

“Yeah.” Brooke acknowledged him.

Although she had seen the sting of Jovan’s words first hand and knew how deep they had cut Vanessa, she found herself understanding where her friend had come from and seeing his side of the argument whilst still emphasising with his sister. Although his approach was faulted and she didn’t agree with all of what he said, part of her admired Jovan’s brutal honesty, the way he stayed true to his authentic self and didn’t feel the need to shy away from topics others would deem unapproachable.

“I’m glad you went and made sure she was okay though. I knew she’d been such a bitch to you so it was a pretty solid thing for you to do for me. Like I said you’re way too good for her and her squad.”

And as much as Brooke wanted to believe him, she found herself still wanting to take up Vanessa’s offer. Not only did she want to spend more time with the girl who absorbed so much of her thought process but her muscles ached with a longing to dance, the thought of having a stable practice, routine and competition a distant utopia in her mind. She craved the release of endorphins, the rush of performing. At her old school everyone understood each other, they were all there for the same unified reason, everyone adhering to each other's needs and abilities. Nothing like the wilderness of R.A Charles where everything was disjointed and uneven - the girls hunted in packs whilst the stragglers tried their hardest to keep up, eventually getting left behind to scarper with the prey. A lipstick jungle of pretty cheerleaders and resident weirdos, Brooke found herself stuck floating in the middle unsure of what to pursue, lost in the wasteland of the hallways. 

Continuing their conversation until Brooke reached her locker, she made plans to meet Jovan at lunch before twisting her code to retrieve her work. She laughed to herself as she opened her locker to find a pristinely folded royal blue Amazons uniform laying across her books, along with a pair of matching spandex briefs. Her cheeks flushing red at the sight of the briefs, she looked around swiftly to make sure Jovan hadn’t seen her reaction to opening the locker. Upon regaining composure and further examination she realised there was a note left alongside the uniform. Brooke found herself once again turning crimson as she read Vanessa’s haphazard and emphasised scroll:

_ “You’re a size 12, right? I think you’ll suit blue. Come to practice so I can find out if I’m right (which I always am) -Vanjie ;)” _

***

If Brooke had set Vanessa a challenge when she told her she’d have to try harder then it had clearly been accepted.

First, she found the uniform in her locker. Then she was called to the student reception in third period to receive what she’d been told was a bag left by her mom containing her gym clothes, opening it to find two blue pompons and another note from Vanessa. The straw that broke the camel's back, however, came at lunchtime when she felt something ping the back of her head as she sat and ate with Jovan, turning around to see one of the signature scrunchies that the Amazons adorned on the floor and Vanessa sitting at the table behind her with a poker face even Lady Gaga wouldn’t be able to decipher.

Quickly picking up the scrunchie and putting it around her wrist, Brooke wondered how far Vanessa would go to try and get her on the team.

“She’ll do anything so she doesn’t seem jealous now.” Jovan rolled his eyes at his sister's antics. “God, imagine being that conscious about what other people think of you.”

“I don’t know, I think she might have just realised she was wrong.” Brooke watched Jovan’s face drop at her response, the results in the water clear at her test. If a picture could paint a thousand words.

“Brooke, you’re not being serious, are you? I thought you were better than falling for that bullshit. She doesn’t care, she just wants to look good after I called her out. Please don’t tell me you’re gonna go.”

“I don’t know.” She looked at her friend, torn between her loyalty to him, the only person who had welcomed her with open arms at her school, and her longing to be on the team with Vanessa. She wasn’t easy, she didn’t want to go running back to the squad after such painstaking rejection but a part of her knew that if she didn’t she’d be miserable - always thinking about the greener grass she could have been dancing across. 

Before Jovan could preach to her further, Brooke’s phone pinged with a text from an unknown number:

_ “I think it’d go better in your hair than on your wrist, don’t you?”  _

A combination of fascinated and annoyed at the girl' message, Brooke’s cool demeanour was thrown out the window when she responded quick:

_ “How did you even get my number!?!” _

Making heavy eye contact from across the tables, Brooke shook her head at Vanessa, who simply tapped the side of her nose and winked in response.

Brooke didn’t know if relentless was the right word but she couldn’t think of anything else to describe it in that moment.

Pure and relentless.

***

Although she hadn’t consciously made a decision about whether or not she would take Vanessa’s offer, Brooke found herself making her way to the gym at the end of the day, her legs controlled by her heart instead of her brain.

She figured just watching the cheerleaders wouldn’t hurt as she stood in the doorway and saw the group congregated through the glass panes. She watched them warm up, Vanessa leading the squad through stretches and exercises around the hall before going straight into stunts and basket tosses. Watching the petite girl be thrown in the air by friends - not an ounce of fear on her face - she could see how fierce and determined she was. Surveying the way she treated the team, Brooke could see why it was so important to her and started to better understand the fight she had witnessed at the weekend.

Vanessa being captain wasn’t just some superficial title, she was their leader. They were all hungry for her approval as they performed. From her short time of exposure to the squad, Brooke could clearly see the hard work that Vanessa put in, more and more layers of her personality unfolding. She was one of those jawbreakers that changed colour and flavour the longer you kept it in your mouth - one second she’s sweet and fruity the next she’s a hot fireball sizzling your tongue. Brooke was mesmerised, even seeing some of her old self in the girl as she watched her burn the candle at both ends, pushing herself to the limit in training till sweat dripped down her forehead.

“Anyone else want a refill?”

Panic suddenly flared up in Brooke as she saw Vanessa making her way towards the exit with her water bottle. Before she could attempt to move away from the door, she once again made dead eye contact with the girl. She watched Vanessa’s face turn from surprised to amused, laughing to herself at the sight of Brooke watching all whilst still holding her gaze. Brooke quickly broke away the eye contact and looked at the floor; knowing full well that if she looked at the sultry girl anymore it would be clear to Vanessa that she wouldn’t hold back any of her desires or intentions. 

“You know in the time you’ve spent watching from this door you could have already learned how to be a base, Brooke Lynn.” Something about her abrupt nature and failure to be coy reeled Brooke into her spell even further. As someone who thought about everything she ever said before it came out, someone who took the time to edit herself to perfection, she found herself so captivated by the way in which Vanessa held nothing back.

“Just Brooke,” she responded, still unable to make a decision about the squad.

“Well Just Brooke, you don’t have to join my squad if you don’t want to, I know I might have missed my chance. But something tells me you’re not really the kind of girl who watches from the sidelines.”

“You don’t know me,” Brooke repeated the words Vanessa had stated to her that night they sat together on the park bench.

Twigging on to what Brook had done, Vanessa smiled.

“I know you’re a great tumbler. And I know that if you weren't really interested you wouldn’t be here.”

Before she could comprehend what was happening, Vanessa had already grabbed her wrist and started running into the gym with her, Brooke otherwise too focused on the way her skin combusted where the girl's hand touched her, too indulged in her fantasy, not fully comprehending how she was now making her way over to the squad. 

“Vanessa,” she whispered, once again looking into the girl’s deep dark eyes.

Brooke found herself amazed at how panicked she had found herself getting since moving to Florida. The old her would have waltzed into the room no issue yet now she found her brain going into standby as she entered the group. In fact, she found herself doing that a lot around Vanessa. She was starting to think that her new streaks of nerves were to do with the girl in the neighbourhood rather than the neighbourhood itself.

“Everyone, this is Brooke. She’s never cheered so we’re gonna have to teach her some pep, movements and yells but she’s got moves and she’s a fast learner.” Vanessa addressed the group, looking back at Brooke at her last words.

Surprised at how nice she was being compared to the day of her audition and even the night they had spent together on the bench, Brooke heard Jovan’s voice ringing in the back of her head, telling her how Vanessa was using Brooke so she didn’t seem jealous in front of her squad. At that moment, even if she was, Brooke didn’t care in the slightest. 

“Brooke, meet the Amazons: Akeria, Silky, Jaren.” She pointed at one of the taller guys Brooke had met previously at the auditions. Going through the other girls in the squad, Brooke struggled to keep up with the names but recognised a few of the girls from sitting with the Amazons around the school.

“I want to re-run that cupie we did earlier,” Vanessa announced to the group after she finished introducing Brooke to everyone. The two boys and a girl that Vanessa had introduced as Monet stepped up and began to get into a formation before being stopped by the coach.

“Actually, I want Brooke as a base.” Vanessa looked at the girl who pulled a face in response.

“I don’t know about that Vanjie..” the taller boy, Jaren, trailed off, clearly not wanting to undermine his captain.

“Yeah, I don’t think I’ll be able to,” Brooke pleaded with the girl.

“I trust you.” Vanessa gave another one of her subtle winks to Brooke before making her way over to the group which Brooke now joined. 

“Just keep eye-contact with Jay.” She touched the back of Brooke’s head, pointing her in the right direction. There it was again - the sizzle that came with her touch. Brooke couldn’t focus, despite how badly she knew she had to. “When Jaren lifts me, move your hands so they hold my shoes. Like this.”

Brooke wondered how she would be able to throw and catch the girl in the air when the simple contact between their arms was making her skin tingle.

“Jaren will count down before you straighten up, and he’ll help you support my ankles. It’s easy once I’m up there, just push my ankles together, like you watched before. Then just keep your arms straight ready to catch me.”

Brooke was astonished at how quickly she had gone from watching at the doorway to performing a stunt with the Amazons. With Vanessa. Everyone’s eyes on her. She thought back to when she used to lift the younger girls at the academy, helping them practice and erase their nerves before they had to do it for real with the boys. 

“Oh, and Brooke.” Vanessa looked at her one last time before they started, her demeanour similar to that of the first day she’d met her, flipping in the cafeteria and smirking in the kitchen. “Don’t drop me, yeah?”

Brooke didn’t need telling twice.

Running through the steps the way Vanessa had shown her, Brooke was surprised at how light the girl felt when she held her foot. Gripping tightly, she pushed up and Vanessa was soaring through the sky before she knew it. Her arms raised high ready to catch her Brooke watched as she hit all of her counts perfectly. Her hair, of course, didn’t depart one bit from her perfect ponytail. God, Brooke thought to herself, that girl was superhuman. Falling back down gracefully yet quickly, Brooke had never felt more relieved than when she felt the girls back against her arms. 

“Think we’ll call it a wrap for tonight,” Vanessa announced to the group.

“Welcome to the Amazons, Brooke Lynn.”

***

Sitting at home alone in one of her Dad’s shirts and a pair of old bike shorts, Brooke was contemplating how she should tell Jovan she was a cheerleader. She highly doubted he’d believe her story about it “just happening” and if he did he would only call her naïve. Cautious of losing her only loyal friend at her new school, she was even debating the idea of just letting him see her in the uniform so she wouldn’t have to have the awkward conversation when her train of thought made a departure as the doorbell rang.

Scared it was him and she’d have to fess up, she answered the door apprehensively, only finding his step-sister on the opposing side instead. If Brooke had thought before that the cobalt of the uniforms had gone perfectly with Vanessa’s colouring like nothing else would, then she was most definitely wrong.

She hadn’t even thought about red.

Dressed in a short scarlet fringed playsuit with her dark hair pin-straight down her back, she was the epitome of a sultriness. The playsuit cut with a deep V, Brooke could see a dash of glitter on Vanessa’s chest, accentuating her collarbone just that tad more. Red lips and nails to match, she was fully coordinated but not in an overdone “matchy-matchy” type of way. Brooke wanted to be her. Or be with her.

“Hi,” Brooke choked, realising she’d been stood gawking for way longer than was socially acceptable.

“Get in, we’re going out,” Vanessa motioned to the car pulled up outside Brooke’s house, Silky and Akeria watching and waiting inside.

“Out?” Brooke exclaimed, looking down at what she was wearing.

“Yep,” Vanessa replied, walking towards the car before Brooke could even respond.

Quickly throwing on a pair of flats and catching up with the other girl’s high heeled strut, she shouted after her. “But I’m not dressed.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Vanessa laughed and got into the back of the car, scooting over to make room for Brooke.

Before Brooke could protest further, Vanessa pulled a scarf out of the seat pocket and tied it around her eyes.

“Welcome to the Amazons.”She heard Silky laughing from the front seat.

***

After what felt like forever but was probably only around ten minutes, the car came to a stop and the girls started to get out. Her hand moving to take her blindfold off, Brooke was stopped by Vanessa.

“Not just yet,” she cackled, giving Brooke a hand out of the car. It was safe to say Brooke was still not and would probably never get used to the lingering that followed on her skin every time Vanessa touched her. 

“Here.” She grabbed the two ends of Brooke’s shirt and tied them in a knot at her waist. “It could be worse.”

After being guided through a few sets of doors, Brooke immediately heard loud dance music and general chitter-chatter, feeling the lighting dim from outside of the blindfold.

Before she could begin to question where they were, someone made their way behind her and took away her blindfold. Before her stood the whole squad in the foyer of what seemed to be a club, dressed to the 9s and making her look subpar in her baggy shirt and cycling shorts. 

“You didn’t think we’d get a new member and not celebrate, did you?” Akeria laughed as she handed Brooke the ID of a similar looking blonde girl to herself. Amazed at how quickly the girl had managed to find it, Brooke thanked her without questioning - if her first few weeks at R.A. Charles had taught her anything it was that the Amazon’s always got their way.

“You’re not hazing me, are you?” Brooke looked around the team with nervousness.

“Don’t be silly, that was just our way of having some fun with you," Silky responded, “Think of it as your last night of being a cheer-virgin. Pretty soon you’ll be a full-time athlete and have our name on your shoulders - take tonight to get drunk, let loose, dance with some boys and get to know your squad.” 

Setting herself a mental note to text her Dad to say she was working on a project at Jovan’s and wouldn’t be back till late, a pang of guilt hit Brooke at the thought of her friend being blissfully unaware he was being used as a cover for partying with the cheerleaders - god, he’d hate it.

“Don’t be worrying about school tomorrow, we’ve got that covered.” Vanessa winked, reminding Brooke of how she’d managed to not only get into her locker but call her to the principal's office that day. What was an idea before was now as good as fact in Brooke’s mind - the girl was superhuman.

“C’mon Brooke, first drinks on me.”

***

Although Silky had described the night as the last hurrah for Brooke, it was more of a first in reality. So focused on ballet, she’d never really been out with her friends back home. But now that she had a glimpse into what she’d been missing she wondered why she hadn’t done this before. 

The music was loud and reverberated in her ears as though it was inside of her - she let it take over her body as she swayed and swivelled to the beat, any reservations she’d had about her outfit and not fitting in out the window once she’d started to move. She was in her own element, abruptly knocked back to planet Earth when a boy she didn’t know came to talk to her.

“Wanna drink?” He asked, raising his eyebrows at Brooke.

“I’m fine thanks.” She responded. Firm but not rude. Always firm but not rude.

“Come a little closer love, I can’t hear you.” He placed his hands on Brooke’s back and drew her in towards him.

Unsure of how to react and not used to being in this type of situation, Brooke’s body went into lockdown as she felt his hands move further down towards the hem of her shorts. She was lost at sea, her body cruelly unaware of how to swim.

“Hey babe,” a familiar voice sounded. There was the lifeboat that would take her to shore.

“Is this guy bothering you?” Vanessa plucked the boys arms away from Brooke and placed her own around her. She was fire warming her up after the cold dip in the water.

“I was just asking if your friend wanted a drink.” He looked Vanessa up and down.

Despite being twice her size and most likely intimidating to everyone else in the room - Vanessa’s flame was not one that was easily put out.

“Well, my girlfriend’s not thirsty.” She emphasized the “girl” before pressing her lips onto Brooke’s in a way that seemed so natural yet completely exceptional at the same time.

The temperature had reached its peak.

Closing her eyes, she felt the other girl's mouth move ever-so-slightly, sending heat waves up and down every inch of Brooke’s body. Where she’d normally pass these types of sensations off to the light buzz of the alcohol - at that moment Brooke was fully sober and present. For once her mind was no longer forward planning, always one step ahead. She was fully there in the moment - ready to punch the clock, break the dawn and stay forever. Just herself and Vanessa, in their own little ring of fire. Immediately thrown, it took Brooke some time before her brain caught up with her body when Vanessa pulled away and turned back to the boy.

“Sorry,” he muttered insincerely before walking away.

Even if Brooke had held a script in front of her, telling her exactly what to say, she would still have been lost for words, staring dumbfoundedly at Vanessa. 

“Close one!” Vanessa looked at Brooke. “Good job you’ve got friends like me to help you, eh? Let’s get you home.”

Silently following the other girls lead as they exited the club, that line kept running through Brooke’s head. Friends like me. Were they friends? Brooke had spent the past few weeks intimidated in her presence.

Jovan had warned her, told her not to fall for Vanessa’s ploy. Yet here she was being protected by her, being kissed by her, only a matter of days after being rejected by her. Never in her life had she been so simultaneously uplifted and soul destroyed at someone calling her a friend. She was friends with Vanessa - the girl she’d spent the past two weeks trying to be around - she should have been happy.

But something still played on her mind - she knew now for sure that she wanted to be way more than friends with her. The feelings Brooke had tried to brush off as a school girl's desire to be liked by the queen bee were now wholeheartedly and undoubtedly a crush - smacking her right in the face like Vanessa’s lips just had. Jovan’s cautions running around her head, Brooke knew at that moment that no matter how hard she got burned, she wouldn’t be able to stop herself from playing with the fire in front of her.


End file.
